Mass General - Division of Clinical Research

The purpose of this study is to see whether a supportive intervention (REVITALIZE) reduces fatigue and its impact on daily life and activities for participants with ovarian cancer taking PARP inhibitors. The name of the study groups in this research study are: 1. REVITALIZE 2. Educational Materials

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2025

open study

This first-in-human study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and antitumor activity of ARC101 in patients with advanced cancer.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2025

open study

This research study involves the study of granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) in patients with MGMT-methylated glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) that are undergoing standard chemoradiation. The study aims to evaluate G-CSF's effects on brain health and cognitive function. The name of the study drugs involved in this study are: - G-CSF (also called Filgrastim) - Temozolomide (TMZ), a standard of care chemotherapy drug

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2025

open study

The main objective is to assess the safety and tolerability of inebilizumab in adult participants with active and refractory systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with nephritis (Subprotocol A) and to assess the safety and tolerability of subcutaneous (SC) blinatumomab in adult participants with active and refractory SLE with and without nephritis (Subprotocol B Part A) and in adult participants with active refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (Subprotocol C Part A). The trial will also assess the efficacy of SC blinatumomab in adult participants with active and refractory SLE with and without nephritis (Subprotocol B Part B and Subprotocol C Part B).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jul 2025

open study

In this research study the study investigators want to learn more about the effect of two different FDA-approved medication regimens in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2025

open study

The purpose of this study is to identify changes in heart tissue structure and biological function in patients with heart failure by performing an endomyocardial biopsy (EMB or heart biopsy) during a right heart catheterization (RHC). The ultimate goal is to use this information to develop new treatments for heart failure.

Type: Observational [Patient Registry]

Start Date: Nov 2024

open study

This phase III trial tests how well the addition of dinutuximab to Induction chemotherapy along with standard of care surgical resection of the primary tumor, radiation, stem cell transplantation, and immunotherapy works for treating children with newly diagnosed high-risk neuroblastoma. Dinutuximab is a monoclonal antibody that binds to a molecule called GD2, which is found on the surface of neuroblastoma cells, but is not present on many healthy or normal cells in the body. When dinutuximab binds to the neuroblastoma cells, it helps signal the immune system to kill the tumor cells. This helps the cells of the immune system kill the cancer cells, this is a type of immunotherapy. When chemotherapy and immunotherapy are given together, during the same treatment cycle, it is called chemoimmunotherapy. This clinical trial randomly assigns patients to receive either standard chemotherapy and surgery or chemoimmunotherapy (chemotherapy plus dinutuximab) and surgery during Induction therapy. Chemotherapy drugs administered during Induction include, cyclophosphamide, topotecan, cisplatin, etoposide, vincristine, and doxorubicin. These drugs work in different ways to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing or by stopping them from spreading. Upon completion of 5 cycles of Induction therapy, a disease evaluation is completed to determine how well the treatment worked. If the tumor responds to therapy, patients receive a tandem transplantation with stem cell rescue. If the tumor has little improvement or worsens, patients receive chemoimmunotherapy on Extended Induction. During Extended Induction, dinutuximab is given with irinotecan, temozolomide. Patients with a good response to therapy move on to Consolidation therapy, when very high doses of chemotherapy are given at two separate points to kill any remaining cancer cells. Following, transplant, radiation therapy is given to the site where the cancer originated (primary site) and to any other areas that are still active at the end of Induction. The final stage of therapy is Post-Consolidation. During Post-Consolidation, dinutuximab is given with isotretinoin, with the goal of maintaining the response achieved with the previous therapy. Adding dinutuximab to Induction chemotherapy along with standard of care surgical resection of the primary tumor, radiation, stem cell transplantation, and immunotherapy may be better at treating children with newly diagnosed high-risk neuroblastoma.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2024

open study

The aim of this study is to find out whether the combination of two approved drugs, ipilimumab and nivolumab, in combination with cryoablation are safe and effective for participants who have an unresectable melanoma that is resistant, or is growing, after receiving immunotherapy with a PD-1 inhibitor. The names of the study interventions involved in this study are: - Cryoablation (an interventional radiology procedure that freezes part of a tumor) - Ipilimumab (an immunotherapy) - Nivolumab (an immunotherapy)

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2023

open study

The focus of this study is to test the efficacy of an 8-week, remotely delivered, positive-psychology-motivational interviewing (PP-MI) intervention, with additional twice weekly text messages for a total of 16 weeks (with interactive, algorithm-driven, goal-focused text messages in the final 8 weeks), compared to MI-alone, in a randomized trial of 280 individuals with type 2 diabetes and low baseline physical activity.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2022

open study

The main objective of this trial is to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacodynamic activity of BBP-812, an investigational AAV9-based gene therapy, in pediatric participants with Canavan disease.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2021

open study

This research is to evaluate the effectiveness of Talazoparib as a potential treatment for metastatic breast cancer with a BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 mutation.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2021

open study

This study will assess the safety and effectiveness of GORE® CARDIOFORM Septal Occluder in a post approval setting and evaluate the quality of operator education and training and transferability of trial experience to a post-market setting.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jul 2019

open study

This phase Ib trial studies the side effects of nivolumab and to see how well it works alone and in combination with other treatments, such as ipilimumab, cabozantinib, platinum containing therapy, and fluoropyrimidine, in treating patients with autoimmune disorders and cancer that has spread from where it first started (primary site) to nearby tissue, lymph nodes, or distant parts of the body (advanced), to other places in the body (metastatic) or cannot removed by surgery (unresectable). Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as nivolumab and ipilimumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Cabozantinib blocks certain proteins, which may help keep tumor cells from growing. It may also prevent the growth of new blood vessels that tumors need to grow. Cabozantinib is a type of tyrosine kinase inhibitor and a type of angiogenesis inhibitor. Chemotherapy drugs, such as platinum containing therapies and fluoropyrimidine, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Giving nivolumab alone and in combination with other treatments, including ipilimumab, cabozantinib, platinum containing therapy, or fluoropyrimidine, may be safe, tolerable, and/or effective in treating patients with autoimmune disorders and advanced, metastatic, or unresectable cancer.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jul 2019

open study

This research study is evaluating a new method for determining stage and prognosis of individuals with malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2018

open study

This research study is studying Proton Radiation as a possible treatment for brain tumor. The radiation involved in this study is: -Proton Radiation

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2018

open study

This phase II trial studies how well osimertinib works in treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutation that is stage IIIB-IV or has come back after a period of improvement (recurrent). Osimertinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2018

open study

This study will evaluate the safety of infusion of the investigational cord blood units by carefully documenting all infusion-related problems.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2012

open study

This trial is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of ficerafusp alfa in combination with pembrolizumab prior to surgical resection in participants with resectable, high-risk, locoregionally advanced, PD-L1-positive squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNSCC). The names of the study drugs used in this research study are: - ficerafusp alfa (a type of bifunctional antibody and recombinant fusion protein) - pembrolizumab (a type of monoclonal antibody)

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2026

open study

This study will examine how two important brain circuits - one involving the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and one involving the ventral intermediate nucleus of the thalamus (VIM) - contribute to learning and producing speech sequences. Participants will include two groups: 1. individuals with Parkinson's disease who have deep brain stimulation (DBS) devices targeting the STN and 2. individuals with essential tremor who have DBS devices targeting the VIM. Participants will complete speech tasks involving the learning and repetition of novel sound sequences. During some parts of the study, DBS stimulation will be temporarily turned on or off in a controlled research setting. This will allow researchers to examine how stimulation affects both the learning of new speech sequences and the production of previously learned sequences. All STN participants and most VIM participants will also be equipped with a cutting-edge DBS system, the Percept PC, which will enable the recording of deep brain activity during the tasks. The results of this study will improve our understanding of how different brain circuits support speech learning and production. In particular, this study will help to differentiate the roles of the STN and VIM in learning the ordering of speech sounds within a syllable from learning of speech sequences containing multiple syllables. This knowledge may help guide future approaches to optimizing DBS settings to improve both movement and speech outcomes in individuals with neurological disorders, as well as provide greater general insight into how these brain structures contribute to speech production and learning.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2026

open study

Estrogen-dominant gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT) is standard of care for transgender women and gender-diverse individuals and typically consists of estrogen together with anti-androgen/ testosterone therapy. Estrogen and testosterone balance influences fat and muscle mass, muscular strength and the development of sarcopenia. Sarcopenia, a condition characterized by the loss of muscular mass, strength, and function, in turn, is associated with increased mortality and adverse health outcomes. Estrogen-dominant GAHT may have deleterious effects on body composition and muscular performance that place TGD individuals at-risk for sarcopenia. As part of NCT04128488, our investigative team found that appendicular lean mass (ALM)/ height2 decreases after estrogen-based GAHT, thereby portending a higher risk for sarcopenia after GAHT. Early recognition of the changes in body composition and muscular performance leading to sarcopenia are critical, providing potential avenues to intervene and abrogate untoward downstream health effects. A promising intervention is resistance exercise, which has been shown in select populations to improve muscular mass and strength and reduce fat mass, and, thus, mitigate progression to sarcopenia in at-risk populations. For this prospective, pilot clinical trial, investigators will enroll participants who are about to be initiated on estrogen-dominant gender-affirming hormone therapy. Investigators will be randomizing participants 1:1 to either an at-home resistance exercise intervention or no exercise intervention (nutritional and exercise counseling only) for 12 weeks and assess muscle mass, strength, and function both before and after this 12-week period. The exercise intervention group will be provided with the necessary materials to complete the exercise program along with weekly virtual visits with our study team in order to learn their assigned exercises for the week. Further, survey tools will be administered to ascertain whether the resistance exercise intervention may affect gender congruence.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2026

open study

The objective of this protocol is to use a case-control paradigm to compare the response to an intravenous administration of kisspeptin in individuals with and without post-covid-19 syndrome. The study subjects will receive a single bolus of kisspeptin. This study will utilize the technique of frequent blood sampling (q10 minutes) to provide detailed neuroendocrine characterization of endogenous LH secretion before and after kisspeptin administration. This frequency of blood sampling is required to define the features of LH pulses.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2026

open study

The goal of this study is to determine the feasibility and impact of delivering long-acting injectable cabotegravir HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and suite of support services to adults who inject non-prescription drugs who are risk for HIV through known sexual risk.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2026

open study

This study explores how a physical activity program can affect hormone health and diabetes risk in girls ages 8-12 who may be at higher risk. The study aims to address: - Does the 'ActiveGirls' program meet the needs of girls and families in engaging them to increase physical activity? - What is the trend of markers of diabetes risk and puberty hormones over a 1-year period and how are these levels related to physical activity levels? Participants in this study will either: - Participate in a 'full' intensity intervention that includes educational messages (text/email) as well as health coaching visits to support physical activity over a 6 month period - Participate in a delayed 'lower intensity' intervention that includes only educational messages (text/email) - Participants in both groups will complete at-home activity monitoring, two study visits for check-ups and tests, and surveys

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2025

open study

Perioperative fasting has historically been viewed as a low-risk intervention. However, preliminary data indicate that perioperative loss of nutrition and fluids is likely harmful. This study intends to characterize perioperative fasting practices and their potential effects on clinical outcomes through possible effects on patient well-being (anxiety, hunger, thirst), physiology (hypovolemia, hypotension), perioperative aspiration, etc. The research team hypothesized that in addition to known adverse effects on patients' well-being, prolonged preoperative fasting adversely affects circulating blood volume-related (hypotension, decreased urine output etc.) and glucose metabolism-related (e.g., hypo/hyperglycemia) perioperative physiology. The investigators will also test for an association between the duration of preoperative fasting and the risk of perioperative pulmonary aspiration. Additional knowledge on the potential adverse effects of preoperative fasting will inform preoperative fasting policies and research interventions that are relevant to hundreds of millions of patients subjected to preoperative/preprocedural fasting worldwide each year.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Jan 2016

open study

The investigator aims to conduct a feasibility randomized controlled trial (RCT) (N=50) to test the feasibility, acceptability, and credibility of an asynchronous web-based mind-body intervention (Toolkit for Resilient Life beyond Pain and Substance Use; Web-TIRELESS) versus web-based minimally enhanced usual care (Web-MEUC) among adult patients with a painful non-traumatic upper-extremity condition(s) (PNUC) and commorbid risky substance use. Deliverables: [1] Adapt and refine open pilot protocol, patient recruitment, and other study materials. [2] Assess the feasibility, acceptability, and credibility of Web-TIRELESS and Web-MEUC in preparation for future research.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2025

open study